Heaven, Absolutely Heaven!

After work today, I headed up the road for a service project.  For an hour, I, along with others, hauled and stacked wood.  As we were getting ready to finish, my friend said, "Marsha, where's your camera?"  I came out of the shed and looked where she was looking and the sky was beautiful.  I went straight to my car and got my camera.  As I have learned, if you don't take the moment right when you see it, sunsets disappear fast.  I started shooting away, as fast as I could.  The opposite side of the sky was such a pretty color of pink but by the time I had gotten these pictures, the pink had all faded out.  I feel so blessed to live in such a place where the views of God's beauty are not obstructed.  Ah, what a beautiful way to close my day.  Heaven, it's absolutely heaven!

Happy Little Home???

 As I was driving around yesterday, looking for my awe shot (that photo I'm waiting to come across that is just going to knock my socks off), I came across this little, old abandoned building.  In the 31 years I've lived in this little valley, I've never noticed this place.  I started to wonder if it was a home, a shed, a storage building, or what it once was.  Then I took notice of the water pump in the front of the place and what looked to be address numbers on the side.  From those clues, and I could be wrong, but I'm guessing a family lived there at some time.  I tried to imagine who lived there.......what type of family it was.  I'm choosing to believe that it was a happy little family with children helping their mother during the day and waiting for their daddy to come home from work at night, with excited anticipation.  Then, I see the father picking up the children and giving them a little toss into the air and seeing their smiling little faces as they giggle with glee.  I'd much rather see this little place as a happy home than just an old abandoned shed.  But, then again, I thought the little building found in this blog was much more than the answer I was told about what it was, too.  Oh well, I'm still choosing to believe in the best and I hope I never hear any different.

Mr. Gordon

Some blog posts are much more difficult to write than others.  This is one of the difficult.  I had the privilege and opportunity to work with one of the finest young men you would every know.  His name, Mr. Gordon, known by all students and faculty at Mackay Elementary School.  On a daily basis, we would find something to laugh about.  He truly made me a better person just by being in his presence.  He has changed my way of thinking about many situations and how I handle them.  He was always cheerful and had a positive outlook on everything.  On Tuesday, our dear Mr. Gordon passed away, at the young age of 27.  I took a few pictures of him last year in the classroom setting and wanted to share.  He was one-of-a-kind!  In this first picture, he was trying to blow the insides out of an egg.  Look how red his face was........he could not get the insides to come out, even after bending a paperclip out straight, sticking it in the hole and stirring up the white and yolk together.  Some of his remarks on this were hilarious and we laughed forever.

He was a gentle, caring man.  The children really love him.  Not just the Kinders, but all grades knew Mr. Gordon.  Each morning, our little classroom was filled with children of all ages playing and visiting until the bell rang for school to start.

With Mr. Gordon, you never knew what to expect.  He literally was a man of many hats.  Whether it be his talents or his comical side, he wore the hats.

 Here he is speaking at his first graduation of the Kinder class.  The graduating class of 2011.  He was so proud!

I can't put in to words all this young man was.  As an example, he brought an old chair into the room at the beginning of the year for me to use.  He actually set up my own space to use with a desk, computer, and everything I needed to feel like I had my own space and I was someone.  He always thanked me, daily for the things I did.  Now, back to the chair..............I love this old, blue chair and I always asked Mr. Gordon to talk to his brother and his wife (owners of the blue chair) and see if they would sell it to me because the one I have at home, well, lets just say it's seen its day.  We've joked about this chair ever since the beginning of the school year.  Last evening, just one day after his passing, his mother called and asked if she could come over.  When they (Gordon's mother and her husband) got to our home and I opened the door to invite them in, they presented me with a brand new computer chair.  She said Gordon had bought this for me on one of his trips to the doctor.  She said he really wanted to get me a chair and when they went to the store, and in his weakened state, they wheeled the chairs to the front of the store for him to try out, picking the one pictured below, just for me. Even in his passing, Mr. Gordon is here, taking care of  me, Mrs. Sayer.  No matter how old and feeble I get or how old and tattered this chair may become, it will always be a part of my life.

Northern (Red Shafted) Flicker Woodpecker

I have tried many times in the past few years to get a photo of a woodpecker on one of our white birch trees on our yard.  Every time I would try to get a picture, the woodpecker would scramble around the trunk, not giving me a clear view to get a photo.  Well, today I went to the Christmas Bazaar with a friend and after I took her home and was headed home myself, I spotted this Northern (Red-Shafted) Flicker (male) on a tree in town.  I immediately pulled off to the side of the road, hoping to finally get my woodpecker photo.  I was a ways from him but low and behold, he stayed on the trunk and let me shoot away.  As I drove off, I thought to myself....he didn't seem too afraid so I circled around the block to see if I could get a better shot.  This time he wasn't impressed and flew away.  At least I did get my woodpecker photos, albeit, not the best photos but........................!

Cinnamon/Sugar Toast

I really hate to admit this, but.....................................basically every morning for breakfast I have two slices of cinnamon/sugar toast.  That's not the part I don't want to fess up to.  It's what I did to my poor toast, morning before last.  I mistakenly grabbed the sea salt shaker and proceeded to put it on my toast, thinking I had the cinnamon/sugar shaker.  It wasn't coming out as fast as usual so I spun the dial around (that should have been my first clue I had the wrong shaker) to get bigger holes so the cinnamon/sugar (so I thought) would come out faster.  I was really having a "DUH" moment!  As I was putting the shaker away, that is when it occurred to me that I had grabbed the wrong shaker.  I thought, no problem, I will just shake off the salt and then put on my cinnamon/sugar mix.  Well, the butter had already melted on the toast, making it impossible to shake off the salt.  I didn't want to waste the two slices of toast so I decided to dump (more than usual) some cinnamon/sugar mixture on top of the salt.  I'm not going to bother you with the details of how bad it tasted but I ate both slices, still not wanting to waste the bread.  I'm telling you, again, I was really having a total "DUH" moment!  Boy did my childhood memories come flooding back to me about the times we switched the salt and sugar around on April Fools Day.  I didn't get a picture of my toast so I robbed one off of the Internet.

A Style of Grace

You know, sometimes I complain that the deer ate my flowers or that they got in the garden or...........?  But when it comes right down to it, I couldn't imagine living away from them.  Tonight as I came home and pulled in the driveway, deer were scattering off the yard.  Then I noticed that just over the fence, there was an entire herd of deer.  I tried to count them and as near as I could tell, there were at least 25.  I never get tired of watching them.  There is a style of grace to the way they jump our fences and run...if you could call it running.  It's a bounding kind of leap run....I know, that doesn't make sense but it is beautiful to watch.

What I Didn't Say

I just love my Sunday after church rides.  Today I just took a bunch of random pictures.  I didn't stay in one spot too long and all my pictures were taken from the car.  It was very cold and windy, thus, I didn't venture out of my car.  I actually started out to get pictures of antelope.  On our way to Stake Conference this morning, there were at least 30 - 40 head of antelope in a field along the way.  Yes, I did have my camera but my husband was driving.  I did say, "wow, look at all the antelope", but what I didn't say was, "stop the car, dear, I would like to get a picture of those antelope".  I know, specifics!  They were still there on our way home but they were further out in the field so I didn't say anything. After we had lunch, I headed back down the road in excited anticipation, hoping to get a fabulous shot, but the antelope were no where to be seen.  Maybe next time.

Just a Skiff

Bur-r-r-r-r!  This morning around 8am, it was snowing and the wind was blowing.  Now, it is close to 9:30am and the sun is out and it looks to be a beautiful day, but as we all know, looks can be deceiving.  The wind is still blowing and the snow is lightly coming down.  I decided to take some pictures on this basis.......Mady, a friend of both my girls, took a picture of a light snow falling she had in her area and stated that it looks like a baker was having some fun and sprinkled the earth with some powdered sugar.  This made me chuckle.  I loved her perspective on a skiff of snow.  I will always look at a skiff of snow through different eyes.

I wish the snow could always be just a skiff or maybe an inch or two, just to cover the ground and everything that looks so barren.  I must admit, the whiteness of the snow adds a glow of beauty to the earth.  But, with just a little snow, it would melt off the roads, making them good for traveling and we could still enjoy the quiet beauty.  Yep, lets keep the deep stuff up in the mountains.

11.11.11 Anniversary

I haven't posted anything for a few days and I was wondering what I could post today when it zinged me...post about your sister.  You see, she and her husband have been married 23 years, today.  Since it is the 11th day of the 11 month and the year 2011 (11.11.11), I thought it was kind of cool for them.  As I write this, they are celebrating their day by eating out at the Sizzler.  Happy Anniversary, Maxine and Deaner Baby!

Just Thistles.....I Think Not

After church today, I once again took a little detour to the mine hill bridge.  I had an early meeting so my husband and I took separate cars which enables me for some photo taking on the way home.  I took some pictures, came home, then loaded them on my computer.  Evan came in and asked if I got some good pictures.  Of course I said yes and proceeded to show him the pictures.  He said, "Marsha, those are just thistles".  It wasn't just that statement he commented on, but it was his tone....like, I think my wife is going bananas.  I explained to him how beautiful I thought the dead thistles were and to look at the different shades of yellows and browns.  I guess it all depends on how you perceive things.  Take a look at these beautiful thistles and just try and tell me they are not unique and beautiful.

 

Back in August, I took a picture of this plant, not knowing if it was a tree, a bush, or a weed.  To this day, I still do not know what it is.

As I was on my way back from the bridge, I noticed these same plants, but now in a dead version.  At least I think it is the same plant.  I sure would like to know what it is.  If it is some kind of bad weed that spreads, we need to get it off the property and let it thrive somewhere else that I can go to and get my photography "Happy", on.

 



Like a Thief in the Night

Like a thief in the night, old man winter is slowly making his way into our little valley to rob us of the abundance of warmth we have had, literally.  It has stayed warm for so long this season that I was beginning to wonder if winter was going to show and sort of hoping that it wouldn't.  The mountains around us are getting snow and we had, what you would call, a "skiff" of snow this morning.  I am so-o-o not ready for the cold.  The visions of scraping windows, shoveling snow to make a path out, not getting fresh air in the house by having to keep all the windows closed, slick roads, etc, etc, etc, are not what I would call pleasant.  Can you tell I am not a winter person, really.  Other than the joyous feeling I get from the "Christmas Spirit", and the beautiful photo opportunities, I do not like winter.  But, I also know that we do need our winters to replenish our little valley in the Spring.

Don't Fence Me In

I don't know how it is in your little corner of the world but here in my little valley, it is beautiful.  Each day gives off a new and different sky color.  A friend and I planned a trip to Pocatello this morning and as I walked out the door, there it was, another beautiful sunrise.  Unlike the one I took two days ago with the dark, blood red color, this one was later in the morning with more bright yellows.  I sure would hate living in a big city where the sky was not visible and you were surrounded by big buildings or other objects that obstructed God's creations.  Yessiree, the song "Don't Fence Me In", says it all.............................
Oh, give me land, lots of land under starry skies above,
Don't fence me in.
Let me ride through the wide open country that I love,
Don't fence me in.
Let me be by myself in the evenin' breeze,
And listen to the murmur of the cottonwood trees.........................!

Eye Candy Sky

This morning, it was dark as I headed out the door.  As I looked to the left, KaBAM.....would you look at what hit my eyes.  It was so dark yet the sky was deep with hues of blue, red, and yellow.  It was totally amazing.  I thought to myself.....wow, is this going to get more beautiful as it gets a little lighter, or what.  To my disappointment, as it got lighter, it all faded out.  This was one that you wished would stay around a bit longer - TOTALLY LONGER......can I use the phrase "Eye Candy"?